


The Truth About Family

by isnt_that_wizard



Series: We'll Always Be More Than A Band (JATP) [6]
Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Genre: Alex Fights With His Parents, Alex Is A Good Brother, Alex has two siblings, Alex is not anxious for once, Alex's Parents Suck, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Band as Family, Don't ask me why, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fighting, Found Family, Homophobia, Pre-Canon, alex luke and reggie love each other, i made a subconscious decision that alex's parents are rich, my own OCs now own my whole heart, rich and homophobic, takes place before they died, they're like fancy rich though
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-08
Updated: 2020-10-08
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:00:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26903293
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/isnt_that_wizard/pseuds/isnt_that_wizard
Summary: “Really, Alex,” he heard his mother say sharply, “Are you even listening to us?”Over the past months, her voice had lost the gentle tone he’d associated with her growing up. He still heard her use it when she talked to Chase or Maggie, but never him. His father watched him carefully from his seat at the head of the table.“Listening to what, mom? You and dad saying you’ll never accept that I’m gay? I got that part already.”----------Alex is getting used to arguing with his parents about his sexuality. They tell him it's wrong, or that it can be fixed. He's used to it. When his parents try to tell him that he's hurting the family, however, he takes a stand. He reminds them, and himself, of what family really looks like.
Relationships: Alex & Luke Patterson & Reggie (Julie and The Phantoms), Alex & Luke Patterson (Julie and The Phantoms), Alex & Reggie (Julie and The Phantoms)
Series: We'll Always Be More Than A Band (JATP) [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1956307
Comments: 29
Kudos: 407





	The Truth About Family

**Author's Note:**

> CW: homophobia

Alex felt like he could scream. He wasn’t sure the exact reason why at this point; it might have been the disappointment in his parents’ eyes, the words they were spewing at him, or the fact that this conversation had become such a commonplace that Alex had practically expected it. He knew it was coming when his mom had sent Maggie and Chase away from the dinner table as soon as his younger siblings had finished eating. Maggie hadn’t wanted to go; she had all but declared herself glued to Alex’s side for the day, but he gave her a wink and promised he’d come play with her soon. Chase had stayed silent, giving his older brother a sorry smile as he picked Maggie up and carried her away. 

Chase was only two years Alex’s junior and, unlike their eight year old sister, understood what was going on despite their parents’ attempts to keep it from their other children. As if Alex could’ve hidden being gay from Chase even if he’d wanted to. The kid had an uncanny ability to read people like a book. 

Cathleen and John Mercer had started in on their eldest child almost as soon as their younger two were gone. It had started almost subtle. Vague, probing questions about how the band was doing, sly comments about how much time he spent with them, a meaningful raised eyebrow here or there. Eventually, Alex had just released a heavy sigh, tossing his large cloth napkin onto the imposing, covered table. 

“What are you trying to say, mom?” Alex had sighed out, knowing exactly what the answer was. It was “The Talk” again. The gay talk. The “how could you do this to us”, “you’re not like that, Alex”, “we can fix this” talk.

Alex just leaned back in his chair- and immediately sat back up at the look his father shot him- and fiddled with his sleeves as he zoned out their words. He was desperately missing the comfort of his pink hoodie right now, but never in their lives had Cathleen or John allowed their children to wear a sweatshirt, hat, or anything even remotely comfortable to dinner. Alex barely listened to his parents berating him. He caught a few words: therapy, church, mistakes. Nothing he hadn’t heard before in the past three months since coming out to them. 

He used “coming out” loosely. The housekeeper had been in Alex’s room, despite his insistence to his parents that he could clean his own damn room, and had found. . . well. She’d gone straight to his father, who had backed Alex into a corner until he came clean. 

“Really, Alex,” he heard his mother say sharply, “Are you even listening to us?”

Over the past months, her voice had lost the gentle tone he’d associated with her growing up. He still heard her use it when she talked to Chase or Maggie, but never him. His father watched him carefully from his seat at the head of the table. 

“Listening to _what,_ mom? You and dad saying you’ll never accept that I’m gay? I got that part already.”

Alex had always been anxious. Talking to people was by far one of the worst things that made him anxious. He could barely order his own food if he and the boys went out; one day Luke had just started doing it for him, no conversation about it. After making it through the first time of saying “I’m gay” in front of his parents, however, it was like all the anxiety of talking to them had melted away. Nothing he could say to his parents was going to get a worse reaction than that had at this point. 

He watched as his father’s eyes flared and his mother pursed her lips at his words. They made what must have been an actual effort to never say the word “gay.” As if it’s very utterance would give them what they so lovingly told him was an “affliction.” Alex, in an act of utter defiance of his parents, used it as much as possible in front of them. 

“Alexander!” his father reprimanded, almost causing Alex to roll his eyes. “For the last time, you are not. . .”

“Gay,” Alex offered. 

“ _Like that_ ,” his father finished with a glare. “This is just those boys you’re always with putting thoughts, _sins_ , in your head.”

Alex cringed a little at his father’s words. Sins? Really? It seemed that John Mercer wasn’t a religious man unless it came to his son and who he was attracted to. 

“They’re taking you down a horrible path, Alex, can’t you see that?” his mother said, calmer this time, as if that was all she needed to convince Alex to see the “errors of his ways”. 

Quitting the band had also been a hot topic of conversation among them lately. They had decided, apparently, that it was very clearly the rock music, clubs, and Luke’s muscle tees that were to blame for putting homosexual thoughts in his head. It didn’t matter that Alex’s first crush on a boy had been before he’d even met Luke and Reggie, and later on Bobby. It also didn’t seem to matter that Bobby flirted with every girl in sight, Reggie’s current infatuation was with the head cheerleader of their school, or that none of the other guys had ever once mentioned something to Alex about being into guys. 

“And if you keep going down this path,” his mother continued, clutching her hand over her heart dramatically, “you’ll be turning your back on the family.”

At that, Alex froze for a moment. His mouth dropped open ever so slightly, and he looked back and forth between his parents. 

“Turning my back on. . . I’m not turning my back on anyone! This isn’t just a switch I can turn on and off, mom! This is just who I am. The family. . .” 

He thought of Chase and Maggie in their rooms up the long, grand staircase. He thought of his little sister’s glowing smile when he would come home from band practice, wanting to hear each new beat on his drums. He thought of her giggles as Alex played with her or read her stories. He thought of how she always told him she loved him before going somewhere- even if it was just the next room over- without him. He thought of Chase. He thought of his little brother who nervously came to him to ask for help on homework because mom and dad were busy working or out at their stupid golf club. He thought of how Chase came to him, quietly saying he’d overheard Alex telling dad he was gay, and how he was really sorry they reacted like that. He thought of how Chase didn’t have a single care in the world about Alex’s sexuality. 

“If you were really my family, you wouldn’t be doing this to me,” Alex finished quietly. “You wouldn’t be telling me there’s something wrong with me, or telling me that there are people who can _fix_ me, or making me hide it from the kids. . . I’m not doing anything to turn my back on the family.”

The three of them sat in silence for what seemed like ages before there was the quiet sound of someone clearing their throats in the doorway. They all turned to look, finding their housekeeper Ana standing there. She looked apologetic for interrupting, shooting a sad look to Alex. Ana had been increasingly kind to him in the past months, and Alex knew it was her silent way of trying to apologize for outing him to his father. Alex didn’t really blame her; she was almost as young as he was, an immigrant, and she was as uncomfortable as Alex was in this too large, too expensive, too cold house. Alex’s parents were rich, and he hated it. 

“Excuse me, I’m sorry,” Ana spoke meekly. “Alex, there’s a phone call for you.”

He smiled at her, not even looking at his parents as he stood from his seat- without excusing himself and without permission he was sure his father would berate him for later- and moved to answer the phone in the kitchen. 

“Hello?” he said as he picked it up.

_“Alex? It’s Reggie.”_

Alex frowned. It was eight at night on a Thursday. Why was Reggie calling this late?

“Hey, man. You good?”

There was silence on the other end of the line for a minute, though there were the vague mumblings of talking in the background.

_“Um, could you come to the studio?”_ Reggie sounded sad and a little nervous. 

“Are you okay,” Alex immediately jumped into protective mode. “What’s wrong?”

Reggie chuckled softly on the other end, _“I’m fine, Alex. No one’s hurt, it’s just. . . It’s Luke.”_

Alex frowned, hearing the worry in Reggie’s voice. He knew things at home hadn’t been great for Luke right now, either. He was sleep deprived half the days because he was up fighting with his mom during the night. 

_“Luke ran away, Alex,”_ Reggie whispered after a moment or two. _“He came to my house- dude, he was crying. Like a lot. We’re at the studio now, but Luke- he asked me to call you. Said he needed us both here right now.”_

Alex’s heart broke for his best friend. He was glad that Luke had gone straight to Reggie and that they were in the studio. Luke’s happy place- all their happy places, really. 

“I’ll be there as soon as I can,” Alex announced into the receiver before sharing a quick goodbye with Reggie and hanging up the phone. Alex grabbed his denim jacket from the kitchen chair he’d slung it over after getting home from school, slipping it on as he swiftly made his way towards the front door. 

Unfortunately, he had to make his way back through the dining room, where his parents were waiting for him. His parents frowned as they took in his appearance, honing in on the car keys he pulled from his jacket pocket. One advantage of having a family with lots of money: he’d gotten his own car for his 16th birthday. 

“Alex, where do you think you’re going?” his father interrogated. 

“Emergency band practice,” Alex said, inching his way towards the door and not looking at them. 

“Absolutely not!” his mom exclaimed. “Those boys-”

“Are my best friends!” Alex felt exasperated as he spun around to look at his mom. “And my _family._ Actual family, who don’t care that I’m gay and who love me no matter what. And I mean, let’s be honest here, okay? You stopped thinking of me as your son three months ago. The only reason you haven’t kicked me out is because you don’t want to look bad or embarrassed in front of all your stupid, rich friends. Am I right?” 

His parents said nothing. Alex rolled his eyes; he didn’t have time for this. Luke was waiting. 

“I’m leaving, okay? I’ll be back tomorrow after school and you can yell at me then, but right now, Luke and Reggie need me.”

His little outburst seemed to leave his parents speechless, and Alex took their blank stares as cue to leave, escaping from the dining room. He was stopped once more on his way out, however, by Chase standing nervously at the front door, Maggie in his arms. Chase looked scared, and Maggie looked tired and sad. 

“You’re leaving?” Maggie asked him, sticking out her bottom lip in a pout. Alex looked at Chase, who was silently asking the same question with his eyes blown wide. Alex let out a sigh, feeling himself deflate a little bit. 

“Just for the night,” Alex answered softly, looking more at Chase than he was Maggie. He saw his brother relax a little bit, and Alex offered him a small smile. Chase was scared he was leaving for _good_ ; he must have overheard parts of the conversation with their parents. 

“But you promised you’d play with me!” Maggie whined, and Alex sighed as he took her from Chase’s arms. 

“I know, princess. But Luke is having a really bad night, and I need to go see him. But! I’ll be back tomorrow, and we can play as much as you want, okay?”

Maggie’s pout was less pronounced now, and she nodded as he tucked her head against Alex’s shoulder. 

“Luke’s sad?” she asked, causing Alex to smile a little bit. Maggie loved the Sunset Curve boys almost as much as he did- maybe even more.

Pressing a kiss to her hair, Alex answered, “Yeah, he’s sad. So Reggie and I are going to go give him lots and lots of hugs. That's what always makes you feel better when you’re sad, right?”

Maggie nodded again, “Can I give him hugs?”

Alex laughed lightly, smiling at his little sister. “Maybe tomorrow, princess. But right now Chase is gonna take you upstairs, okay?”

He passed Maggie back to their brother, smiling at them both. Chase still looked tense. 

“I’m serious, Chase. I’m coming back,” he reassured, and his brother nodded. Alex clapped him on the shoulder, kissed Maggie’s head once again, and pulled open the front door. 

“Love you, guys!” he called behind him as he shut the door, making his way out to the street where he’d parked his car this afternoon. 

Alex didn’t let any thoughts of his parents distract him as he drove to the studio. He’d been dealing with three months of that crap, and right now he needed to be focusing on Luke. He parked his car in front of the house they rented the garage from, practically running into the studio. Luke was sat on the couch, head buried in his hands. Reggie was next to him, looking sad and rubbing a hand up and down Luke’s back. 

“Hey, guys,” Alex whispered, moving to sit on Luke’s other side. As soon as he did, the guitarist turned, pulling Alex into a hug. Alex smiled sadly, holding Luke tight against him in comfort. 

“I’m so sorry, Luke,” Alex let out, running a hand through his friend’s hair. Reggie sighed next to them, resuming his hand’s movements on Luke’s back. Luke didn’t respond in words, though Alex felt a few tear drops hit his pant leg. They all sat like that for a while, waiting for Luke’s tears to subside. When they did, Luke pulled back, falling back into the couch cushions. He looked drained. Luke smiled at them both gratefully, snuggling into the flannel he was wearing- one he’d stolen from Alex, the drummer noted. 

After a few more minutes of silence, all three of them pressed against each other, Reggie looked at Alex over Luke’s head. He regarded him for a moment before reaching over Luke and nudging his knee. 

“Hey,” Reggie said, gently. “You okay?”

Alex frowned, tilting his head in question. “Yeah? Why?”

“You sounded upset when you answered the phone earlier.”

Alex shook his head slightly. He should have none Reggie would pick up on it. “It’s nothing, I’m fine.”

Luke turned to look at him now, frowning a little. “Alex. . .”

The drummer sighed. “It was nothing. My parents.”

They both looked to him sadly, giving him their full attention. Alex was grateful for the love his friends were showing him right now and the genuine care, but he felt bad that they were trying to focus on him right now. Luke was the one who needed the comfort right now, still releasing a few odd tears. 

“We can talk about it in the morning,” Alex whispered with a smile, though his tone didn't give much room for argument. Reggie and Luke looked hesitant, but they both nodded. All three of them resituated their positions on the couch, practically laying on top of each other. Reggie and Alex cuddled Luke between them, who had his head on Reggie’s shoulder and legs in Alex’s lap. 

Alex didn’t think he could have been more honest when he’d told his parents that these boys were his family. They were brothers through and through, whether they had blood relation or not. He loved these guys, and they loved him. This is what family is supposed to look like. Alex snuggled down on the couch, closer to his brothers. Cuddled together like that, the three teens fell asleep, glad that whatever pain was going on outside of the studio, in here they at least had each other. 

**Author's Note:**

> I don't think I've ever written so many fics in such a short time period but ya girl is on a roll
> 
> Also I don't know from where in my brain Chase and Maggie came from but I love them and will most definitely use them again. Alex just has that Big Brother energy. And is it just me who thinks Owen looks like he gives really good hugs? 
> 
> Thanks for all the love! <3


End file.
